The Thin Red Line in Investing

 "(...) it is by no means easy to draw the line between investment and speculation" (Philip Carret, The Art of Speculation,  1930, Ch. XVIII)

It can be equally difficult to draw the line between a morally defensible contrarian investment and an unethical exploitation of a troubled situation.

These points have been given renewed force by the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine by Russia, under the command of Vladimir Putin.

As the world's tentative recovery from the COVID pandemic is now confronted by the profoundly shocking spectacle of war in mainland Europe, well-known quotations like Nathan Rothschild's "Buy on the sound of cannons, sell on the sound of trumpets" seem utterly inappropriate.

Even if it were judged ethically appropriate to invest in Russia now, the removal of companies from London listings and the sanctioning of cash flows into and out of the Russian economy make it practically uninvestable.

However, once it became clear that an invasion was underway my investing red line was crossed, and small holdings in Polymetal and the Thornbridge Global Opportunites Fund (the latter holding 10% in Russia as of January 2022) were sold. 

Thus part of my planned 2042 value portfolio has already been disrupted, just after inception. 

Everyone's red line is differently placed, or perhaps non-existent, but some investments become too uncomfortable to hold with a clear conscience. Such is true of Russia for me in spring 2022.

I am fortunate to have the freedom required to ponder what to invest in instead. In the time it's taken me to write this post who knows how many in Ukraine will have lost their lives, let alone their liberties.